Month: October 2012

Germany is known for it’s technology expos like CeBIT but for more detailed and in depth view about the state of information technology you might want to go to Fujitsu Forum like I did a year ago invited by LIFEBOOK4Life. This year it’s held November 7th and 8th at the ICM in Munich and enables you to get an insight what the Japanese multinational information technology equipment and services company and world’s third-largest IT services provider thinks about information technology and where the IT is going.

Fujitsu Forum is the largest IT-event in Europe which is visited by professional users and IT decision-makers, as well as Fujitsu channel and technology partners. In 2011 more than 10,000 IT experts from around the world attended the Fujitsu Forum in Munich. And I was one of them invited by Fujitsu LIFEBOOK4Life campaign. As I’m a LIFEBOOK4Life Insider there’s a chance to visit the Forum also this year so let’s look what events I’m looking forward to the most and why I would want to visit those.

Fujitsu Forum 2012’s motto is “Reshaping ICT – Reshaping Business”: How to combine business processes and IT to form a stable basis that will ensure growth and success in the future. Kind of redefinition of last year’s “Reshaping IT” theme. With keynotes, breakout sessions, exhibition area and expert talks there is plenty for everyone to see and listen. But as I last year got to experience the time is not enough for everything so you must choose your own agenda which is made easier with the Individual Agenda Builder.

My agenda contains mainly topics about how the workplace in changing and what new devices there is to expect and their use cases. As a software developer the technical development affects the software and provides new innovative ways to use software. So it’s good to know which things are just around the corner or little further away. Here is my take of the events I look forward to the most (my Fujitsu Forum 2012 Agenda, pdf). I think the events’ descriptions tell all the reasons to participate. It was hard to pick just three but managed to get it down to one Keynote and two Breakout Sessions.

Keynotes are addressing the questions like “The direction of future IT developments?”, “Which technologies will be on the CIO agenda?” and “What strategic factors will be of importance to decision-makers?” and although as working in a big corporation it would be interesting to know how the CIO thinks, as a tech geek more interesting one is the future IT development. From the Keynote sessions I would attend “Deriving Value from the Connected Economy”.

The world is changing as new technologies enable information, opinions and idea sharing like never before. Such rapid evolution is breaking down the barriers for creating businesses and economic value. We see an opportunity to harness the knowledge and ideas of the world’s population as large- scale business potential. We have tools available to be ahead of the curve in supporting this transition; and more solutions become available. Having the right strategy to produce solutions customers want, leverage technology and enable employees is paramount. Inspiring examples of the strategies and tools that are needed to pace ahead of these transitions and enable value creation for company.

There is around 50 breakout sessions which discuss technologies, best practices and innovative solutions that are relevant to the modernization and further development of IT so you can’t attend every one of them. For more business oriented people there is “the benefits and threats of the cloud”, “in-memory computing for “big data”” and “solutions for data centers that cut costs and increase IT flexibility” but for technology oriented geeks hearing about “new developments in IT mobility” and “behind-the-scenes looks at current IT-research” is something to look forward to. So “Tablets & More – Cool scenarios for hot devices” and “The War between Enduser Devices” are obvious choices.

Media tablets and mobile centric applications are new top priorities for business users and IT. How can combinations of current and new technologies help you to securely and efficiently merge the opportunities offered by business and privately owned devices? Find out about the effective and secure blend of accessing business and private IT environments from new mobile devices.

“The War between Enduser Devices” by Thomas Meyer, IDC

New formats for enduser devices are appearing very quickly. Netbooks, Ultrabooks, Tablets, new types of thin clients and also operating systems such as Android are raining down on IT departments. This analyst presentation looks at what can be expected in the near future. Which device for which purpose and how to deal with such a complex range.

Sometimes a specific in-depth know-how is required and Expert Talks are the place to attend. They are focused on specific topics and supplement the strategic approaches outlined in the keynotes and the concrete information presented in the breakout sessions with specialist discussions in small groups. Expert Talks are ideal for those who want to exchange information, discuss specific issues in detail and share ideas with other specialists. There is many topics to choose like “How to mitigate the headache caused by BYOD?”, “Secure your valuable data: Easy to use and scaleable security solution”, “Android tablets in Business Environment – A challenge for CIOs?”, “New LIFEBOOK notebooks meet trend of consumerization” and “Oracle Applications Strategy”. Would like to go couple of those but my agenda is already full.

And between the events it’s a must to visit the exhibition which holds 3,500 square meters of innovations and presents over 250 highlights from Fujitsu and its partners. For example I look forward to get hands-on with Fujitsu STYLISTIC Q702 hybrid tablet PC and Windows 8 running on new touch devices and hear about a brand new way of running desktop environments.

But there is also something more. On the Wednesday evening singer-songwriter Amy MacDonald takes the stage at the Fujitsu Intel Celebration Night. Not to forget the delicious bratwursts and weissbier which I hope are provided also this year :) Technology, entertainment and nourishment: what could a professional user wish more?

Fujitsu Forum holds many interesting keynotes, sessions, insights and experiences which I last year got to experience. The chance to do it again this year is open so let’s hope I get to travel to Germany for Fujitsu Forum 2012 experience, meet other Insiders and see NDA devices like last year the Ultrabooks which Fujitsu released this Summer.

Fujitsu’s LIFEBOOK4Life is here again with “Ultra Test Flight” and new challenges for Insiders. This year it’s about Ultrabooks and the Autumn will be full of interesting tasks to fulfill. In the end if successful the Insiders can keep their Ultrabooks, be it U772 or U572. Last year I took part in Fujitsu’s “LIFEBOOK4Life: Accept no boundaries” campaign and tested LIFEBOOK S761 laptop. It was very interesting couple of months. This year is not going to be any different and looks like it will be even more exciting.

LIFEBOOK4Life: Ultra Test Flight challenges 40 independent IT- and lifestyle-bloggers (called Insiders) from all over the world to a quest through virtual airport passing all stations from check-in to the gate. Each station contains a solo and a group task in which the Insiders unveil the features of Fujitsu’s Ultrabooks (U772 and U572) in aspects of mobility, reliability, elegance, connectivity and security. In the end if an Insider solves at least seven test tasks he or she can keep the Ultrabook. There is also extra bonuses with a change to go to Fujitsu Forum 2012 in Munich, which I went last year, and the Top 10. will get a flight voucher.

There are total of 10 test tasks and couple of extra tasks for the enthusiasts. Last year there was overall of 15 tasks but unfortunately the project site is not available anymore. It was and will be quite brain teasing and interesting to solve those with travel themed and somewhat tongue-in-cheek like articles. For example “mobility” contains a task to pack a lightweight luggage with the five items and “security” is about discussing and showing which security feature is your favorite. “Elegance” is for thin-telligence and design & style as “connectivity” is for 3G/UMTS and 4G/LTE. And the fifth theme “reliability” is about features which combine German engineering with Japanese quality.

LIFEBOOK4Life: Ultra Test Flight started last Friday which was convenient as the same day I got my package from the local post office. As usual, everything starts with unboxing and as a special Silver Insider (last year went the extra mile and expressed extraordinary commitment) my package contained a red LIFEBOOK U772. In short: Intel Core i5-3427U (2.8 GHz, 3 MB), 4 GB RAM, 128GB SSD, Intel HD Graphics 4000, 14″ 1366 x 768 LED backlight and Anti-glare screen, 802.11 a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 4, 3G/UMTS, 4G/LTE, (WxDxH): 327 x 225 x 15.6 mm and 1.4 kg. I will later write a short review about it.

The project has also something for everyone. You who can take part in a raffle and win a flight. To improve your chances of winning you can earn badges which gives you an extra raffle ticket. Just comment on 10 different blog articles, “Like” 10 different blog articles, share 3 articles with your friends on Facebook and log in on 6 different days.